South Tourist Park-Not Free Campground

South Tourist Park-Not Free Campground

The name of this park, South Tourist Park, should tell you all you need to know, however, it’s not what you would expect.

This little park featuring 16 dry camping sites, a dump station and potable water is located right on the water in Idaho Falls. Don’t believe the apps telling you this place is a boondocking place. When you pull in you are greeted right away with a big sign to register and pay your $20 dues. I don’t know about you but boondocking does not require money to stay in the spot, paved sites and a limited number available.

Because we had planned to do a few things around the Idaho Falls area we did not mind paying the $20 to be close to the things we wanted to do, however, after spending a couple days there we quickly realized that it was not worth the $20. Yes, it was a right on the water and centrally located but it cost $20 to stay there, there were no hookups, and to be honest, it was inching towards the border of becoming grimey.

Because this place was public property you had many people coming in, using the boat dock, fishing, dumping garbage, running their dogs around without leashes, and a lot of loitering. You could tell how at one time this park was probably pretty nice, but over time it became poorly managed, cared for less, and just became a spot that was set up and collecting money. One morning we even saw, what I assume was a homeless man, sleeping on the bench by the water. No car, no bike, no nothing, just there sleeping. Mind you, it was in the 40’s in the morning, so definitely not ideal sleeping conditions.

Ultimately, this is not a place that I would revisit. I think the apps that us campers and RVers use should be updated so that this is not a mistake made by other people. The apps state that this place is free, which it is not, and it also comes up for boondocking, which isn’t really what you are doing here. Could it be a nice park if maintained and regulated? The answer is yes. Could it be worth $20 for no hookups? The answer to that is also yes, if the previous question was fixed.

On a side note, there was a cute little goose family that inhabited the area. When they weren’t being harrassed by unattended children and dogs, they were super cute and fun to watch waddle around the place.